Overview What is effort? What is effort reporting? Why is Effort Reporting necessary?... 2

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1 Effort Certification Training Guide Contents Overview... 2 What is effort?... 2 What is effort reporting?... 2 Why is Effort Reporting necessary?... 2 Effort Certification Process: More than just Certification... 3 The Effort Certification and Reporting Technology (ECRT) System... 6 Who is required to certify?... 6 Key Roles associated with the effort certification process:... 7 ECRT: Accessing the System... 8 The ecrt Home Page... 9 Organizational Department Dashboard Statement Statuses Overview of an Effort Statement s Data Effort Coordinator Work List Manage Effort Notifications The Effort Statement: Cost Share The Effort Statement: Committed Effort The Effort Statement: Placing an Effort Card on Hold Reporting Quick Tips Need Assistance? FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 1

2 Overview Effort Reporting is a federally mandated process required when an individual is compensated by or contributes time to a sponsored project. This federal regulation located in in the Uniform Guidance, requires that the University confirm that the percentages allocated to each activity represent a reasonable estimate of the work performed on federal and federal flow-thru grants and contracts. FIU has chosen to apply this standard to all sponsored projects. What is effort? Effort is defined as the amount of time spent on a particular project or activity. This includes the time spent working on the project and directly charged to the project as well as the time contributed to the project (cost shared effort). What is effort reporting? Effort reporting is the federally mandated method used to certify to the funding agencies the effort charged or contributed to a sponsored project. Why is Effort Reporting necessary? Federal circular 2 CFR 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance) is the federal government's cost principles for colleges and Universities. It defines what costs are allowable and allocable to federal grants and other "assistance" agreements. In addition, this Circular sets guidelines for sponsored procedures such as effort certification. Federal circular 2 CFR 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance) requires that institutions develop a mechanism to determine or confirm how individuals actually expend effort during a specified time period. These effort reports must be performed on a regular schedule and must be certified by individuals who have first-hand knowledge of the employee's compensated activities. A failure to manage and certify effort correctly could jeopardize the University's federal funding and lead to penalties for FIU. FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 2

3 Effort Certification Process: More than just Certification The purpose of effort reporting is to certify an individual s overall effort during a specific period of time. The process begins at the proposal stage of a project and continues through the lifecycle of the project (Figure 1). Figure 1 (courtesy Huron Consulting) Appointing Faculty & Staff During this phase Employment terms are established. Institutional Base Salary (IBS) is established and any additional compensation is identified. Proposal and Award Phase The principal investigator determines the amount of time that is anticipated to be spent on a given project when preparing the initial budget request. This is when a commitment is made to the sponsor. Once the sponsor s award notice is received by the University, the Post-Award representative will generate the award in the financial system. Project Management Phase Once the award is made and the payroll data is established, the project management phase begins. In this phase Salary is charged (or cost shared), consistent with the activity. Adjustments may be made, shortly after-the-fact. FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 3

4 It is during this phase of the sponsored project s life cycle that Effort Certification occurs (Figure 2). As per FIU policy, effort must be completed each semester, using the University s effort certification system: Effort Certification Reporting Technology (ECRT). ECRT will generate an effort statement for any researcher/certifier who is paid from or contributed effort to on sponsored project. Effort certification statements are required to be electronically certified by the deadline established by the ORED Central Unit. Figure 2 FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 4

5 Before the Effort Certification Period Opens: Period of Performance This is the time period for which individuals are required to certify. During this time, effort is spent on sponsored projects, payroll and cost share amounts are recorded and people, project and payroll data is loaded into ECRT (Figure 3). Figure 3 (Courtesy Huron Consulting) During this time, effort coordinators are able to view the data in ECRT and verify the data is correct as it builds. This is the time frame prior to the effort reporting opening for certification. During this phase, it is important to note that although the effort coordinator may see the effort card building, some of the overall percentages may be incorrect because the effort period has not officially closed. Before the Effort Reporting Period Opens: Pre-Review Period Similar to the Period of Performance phase, effort coordinators are able to view the data in ECRT. However, during this 7-day period, the effort coordinators are able to see the data in its entirety. At this time, the effort coordinator is able to verify the statements by examining payroll, cost sharing and any other relevant information. FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 5

6 Effort Certification: Certification Period The Effort Certification Period will last 30 days. During this phase: 1. Researcher s Statement must be Certified: According to OMB Circular: Uniform Guidance, activities must be confirmed by responsible persons with suitable means of verification that the work was performed. Therefore, the researcher, PI, or the researcher s supervisor must view the researcher s effort statement and certify that it accurately depicts actual effort for the Effort Reporting Period. Person with suitable means of verification is the individual whom has some type of documentation of how the time was spent that is has certified. Documentation could be in the form of an , calendar, project reports, etc. If the effort statement is accurate, the individual certifies the statement. The percentage total must be 100%. If the effort statement does not accurately reflect the researcher s effort, the certifier must change the statement s effort percentages so that it accurately reflects his/her actual effort for that Effort Period. 2. Effort Coordinators must Process any Statements which lie outside the 1% variance for each line item on the Effort Statement. During this period the effort coordinator must review the certified statement. If changes were requested by the person with suitable means of verification, the effort coordinator is responsible for facilitating those changes. Once any changes are properly made and the statement s data is accurate, the effort coordinator must process the statement. Once the statement is certified and processed, the statement is considered certified and this fulfills the effort reporting period s requirements. After the Effort Period Closes: Post Certification Period All effort statements must be processed by the established deadlines for each certification period. During this phase, the ORED Central Unit is responsible for: 1. Verifying that all effort statements were processed. 2. Retaining effort statements as part of their institutional oversight responsibilities. The Effort Certification and Reporting Technology (ECRT) System FIU uses a web-based system, ECRT, to facilitate the institution s effort reporting and certification process. ECRT is a web-based technology that intuitively guides certifiers and administrators through the various facets of the effort reporting and certification process on a semester basis. The purpose of this guide is to guide you, the user, on the necessary steps to properly certify and process an effort card. Who is required to certify? Every FIU employee has an effort card in ECRT each semester. However, a certification is required only for individuals who have effort on one or more sponsored projects and are exempt from the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Certifications are triggered based on salary charges to sponsored projects and commitment data. A certifier refers to an individual whose effort must be certified in ECRT. There are two kinds of certifiers: 1. Self-Certifiers, who must certify their own effort 2. Non-Self Certifiers, who must have their effort certified by their Principal Investigator(s). FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 6

7 Key Roles associated with the effort certification process: 1. Principal Investigator: The individual who has ultimate responsibility for a sponsored project(s). The principal investigator (PI) identifies all individuals that work on a project and is responsible for assuring compliance with effort reporting policy. 2. Researcher/Certifier: An individual hired by the University (on the University payroll) who works on sponsored projects and may be responsible for the verification of all time spent on the project. 3. Primary Effort Coordinator: Primary effort coordinators are departmental administrators who are responsible for monitoring the effort certification progress of their department and facilitating the process for their departments. By processing the card, the effort coordinator is confirming that any other actions as a result of certified effort have been or will be undertaken. Only one primary effort coordinator can be assigned for each department/division. 4. Secondary Effort Coordinator: Secondary effort coordinators can assist in the monitoring of departments. There can be multiple secondary effort coordinators assigned to a department/division. 5. ORED - Central Unit: The unit within the Office of Research and Economic Development (ORED) with the responsibility for administering and monitoring the effort reporting system to ensure compliance. This includes initiating and monitoring the effort reporting process and loading payroll and other data files. FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 7

8 ECRT: Accessing the System 1. ECRT is accessible direct at or by going to the Effort Reporting webpage at and click on the Log into ecrt button 2. To access ecrt, use your Panther ID and password credentials on the Login Screen (Figure 4) Figure 4 3. Once the system has completed authentication, the Home Page window is displayed. This is the entry point to all system functions and offers links to a variety of resources to assist with effort reporting. FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 8

9 The ecrt Home Page While the appearance of the Home Page differs according to the rights and roles that have been assigned to each user, some elements are always included: 1. The panel on the left side of all users Home Pages contains several useful links. These links are dynamic and may change at times. The following list shows examples of links that may be included: a. OMB Circulars b. National Institutes of Health: Grants Policy and Guidance c. FIU Division of Research Policies and Procedures d. The ecrt Training Guide 2. This is the menu bar that is on every window in the ecrt system. The tabs available vary depending on the roles and rights associated with a user. 3. Work list - Up to three tabs may be listed: a. Statements Awaiting Certification b. Effort Tasks: This tab will show for primary effort coordinators only. c. Associated Certifiers Figure 5 displays a Primary Effort Coordinator s Home Page. Note that it includes all of the links that can be used by a Primary Effort Coordinator. All users can see only those links that correspond to their assigned roles and system rights. The red numbers on the figure correspond to the numbered list above Figure 5 FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 9

10 Organizational Department Dashboard ECRT provides information about your department on the Department Dashboard and is available only to Effort Coordinators. The dashboard allows an effort coordinator to review and access the statements of each individual s last four effort statements. If an effort coordinator is assigned to multiple departments, each department can be accessed from a drop-down menu. To access the department dashboard, select Organizational Department Dashboard under the manage section on the blue navigation bar (Figure 6). Figure 6 If you are an effort coordinator for more than one department/division, you can select another department/division from the drop down box at the top of the page (Figure 7). Figure 7 The Department Dashboard breaks down information into 3 tabs: FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 10

11 1. People: provides statistics regarding the number of certifiers whose effort cards are in each status for the most current certification period (Figure 8). a. Certification Summary Chart: The Certification Summary Chart lists the number and percentage of effort cards that are in the specified status for the department/division you are viewing. If you are responsible for more than one department/division, you must look at each department dashboard separately. b. Covered Individuals: Provides a list of certifiers associated to your department along with a link to their current and historical effort cards. This section is broken out into four distinct sections: i. The Sponsored section lists individuals for the selected department who work on sponsored projects. ii. Non-Sponsored. This area displays effort cards that are 100% non-sponsored payments. If individuals are in this section, their effort cards will be auto-processed. iii. The Non-Departmental section will list individuals that are charging sponsored and/or non-sponsored salary owned by your department, but the researcher has a home department in another area iv. The Terminated Section will show individuals whom are no longer with the University c. Click on the + next to Sponsored to display a list of all individuals charged to sponsored projects. The statements column shows current and historical icons for each of the last four effort cards for this individual. By scrolling over the icon, you can see the status as well as effort card period. By selecting an icon, you will be taken to that effort card. For detailed description of the icons, please see the Statement Status section. Figure 8 Note: The researcher s newest statement will appear on the left. ECRT will display only the individual s last four statements. If there was a break in service, no statement will appear. 2. Awards and Activity/Project ID: provides a list of both active and inactive awards associated to your department. 3. Organizational Department Information: provides basic information about your department, a listing of effort coordinators with access to your department information, and a listing of department relationships associated to your department. Primary effort coordinators are highlighted in yellow. All others are secondary effort coordinators, department viewers, and/or restricted access effort coordinators. FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 11

12 Statement Statuses This status indicates that an Effort Statement is not yet ready for certification. This occurs during the Period of Performance, when payroll and profile data are being loaded and the Effort Statements are being built. This status is when an effort statement has been marked as Manual Certification by an Effort Coordinator and then Processed (finalized) by the Central Administrator This status is when an effort statement has been marked as No Certification Required by an Effort Coordinator and then Processed (finalized) by the Central Administrator This status is when an effort statement has been marked as No Certification Required by an Effort Coordinator and then Processed (finalized) by the Central Administrator. After being finalized, an additional payroll transaction has been loaded to this effort statement, which needs to be reviewed and posted to the statement by the Effort Coordinator. When the certification period opens, all cards requiring certification will start at this status. This means the card has not yet been certified by the certifier or processed by the effort coordinator. The status for effort cards that have been certified by the certifier but are pending review/processing by the primary effort coordinator. Status for effort cards that have been certified by the certifier and processed by the effort coordinator. No further action is required. Status for effort cards that require no certification, as all salary is charged to non-sponsored projects. ECRT contains payroll information for all employees, resulting in creation of an effort card. At the start of the certification period, all effort cards that do not require certification are set to auto approved status. Status for effort cards that have been certified by the certifier and processed by the effort coordinator, but a payroll adjustment has occurred that must be reviewed by Central Administration. Central Administration will review each transaction and determine if the effort cards must be reopened and recertified or if the transaction can be posted without resulting in required payroll transfers. Status for an effort card that was certified at one time and then reopened by the effort coordinator during review at the processing stage. This requires the certifier to recertify the effort card. Status for an effort card that was certified at one time and then reopened by Central Administration due to a payroll adjustment that was processed. The payroll adjustment posted caused the certified effort percentages not to equal the payroll percentages and the certifier must recertify the effort card. FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 12

13 Overview of an Effort Statement s Data University policy states that all individuals who have effort on a sponsored activity must certify that effort. Effort certification statements are the University s legal record of how it spends sponsors funds on salaries. These statements are auditable by sponsor representatives as well as by the University s internal and external auditors. The effort statement (Figure 9) consists of five main columns of information: committed effort, payroll, cost share, computed effort, and certified effort. Certified Effort is the only column that a researcher may change. Payroll Represents payroll expended on any activity and is reflected as a percentage of the total payroll for the certifier. The amount of payroll reflected on the statement is an average over the effort period s payroll expenditures for the certifier or a percentage of time. Figure 9 1. Committed Effort column is the effort commitment established based on the award negotiation and/or acceptance of the award 2. Payroll column will total 100 percent. Payroll percentage is based on the agreed upon percent of effort to be expended on each project, unless cost sharing has been identified. Payroll should not exceed effort and must be within +/- 5% of the certified effort amount. Changes to the Payroll column must be made by processing a payroll transfer. 3. Cost Share when effort exceeds payroll charged to the project, the difference is referred to as cost share. The University is sharing the cost of the project. Cost sharing is represented as the effort period s average or percentage of time. Therefore, any changes to the Cost Share column must also be made as needed per effort period. Changes to the Cost Share column may result when actual effort on a sponsored project differs from the data appearing on the effort statement. The Payroll column must not exceed actual effort on sponsored projects. Only non-sponsored ids can fund the difference when actual effort exceeds the pay distributed on sponsored projects. 4. Computed Effort represents the work or the proportion of time spent on any activity and is expressed as a percentage of total time. The amount of effort reflected on the statement is an average over the effort period s time spent on the project, represented as a percentage of time. The effort percentage devoted to a sponsored project is agreed upon between the certifier and the PI and must abide by the sponsor s FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 13

14 terms and conditions. Changes to the effort statement result from changes in actual effort expended on a project. These changes must be reflected on the effort statement prior to being certified by the certifier or the PI. The Effort column will total 100 percent and must be represented by a positive percentage. Effort will be expressed in whole numbers. The Computed Effort column will equal the Payroll column plus or minus the Cost Sharing column. 5. Certified Effort defaults based on computed effort and is the only modifiable field on the effort statement. It can be changed by the certifier or PI. Certifiers must enter the percentage of effort that was expended on sponsored activities if different from computed effort. This column must total 100%. 5% or $1,500 Threshold for Certified Effort: If the certified effort percentage differs from the computed effort percentage; ECRT calculates and displays the amount of the resulting variance. If the variance exceeds the 5% or $1,500 threshold set by FIU, a payroll transfer must be initiated to reduce the charge to the sponsored project. If the difference is less than 5% or $1,500, an adjustment is not required (but may be processed). 6. Notes allows users the ability to enter further comments, justification, and other relevant notes that will serve as a communication tool to other users. Note: If a star icon appears next to the Notes section, then a note is available to view. Click on the arrow to expand the notes section and view any relevant notes (Figure 10). 7. Attachments allow users to upload additional documentation. This functionality is most commonly used for attaching manual effort certification statements and/or further documentation of justification, additional approvals or legal attestation of a recertification of effort. All attachments must be saved in the proper format which includes: PDF, JIF, TIF or JPEG. Note: If a star icon appears next to the Attachments section, then an attachment is available to view. Click on the arrow to expand the notes section and view any relevant attachments (Figure 10). Figure 10 FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 14

15 Effort Coordinator Work List Upon successful login to ECRT, effort coordinators will see their work list. This view is specific to the roles and rights given to an effort coordinator. The ECRT work list is designed to help make tasks easier by putting them all together in one place. An effort coordinator s work list contains three tabs: Statements Awaiting Certification, Effort Tasks and Associated Certifiers. 1. Statements Awaiting Certification: if the effort coordinator has an effort statement associated to them, it can be accessed here. These are the individuals in your department. 2. Effort Tasks: lists statements that require the effort coordinator s action. Statements that have been certified but await the effort coordinator s approval or action will appear here. 3. Associated Certifiers: This tab contains a complete list of all of the effort coordinator s associated certifiers. From this list, the effort coordinator may access a specific researcher s statement. Effort Tasks Tasks that awaiting the effort coordinator s action will appear in this tab (Figure 11). Figure 11 Processing Certification Statement This type of task includes statements that have been certified by the certifier yet await the effort coordinator s approval. Until approved, the item will remain under the effort task list. Note: If the individual effort lines on the effort card were not adjusted at the time of certification, the card will be auto-processed and no further action will be required on the effort coordinator s part. The threshold per line on the effort card is 1%. If a line item on the effort is adjusted with a variance of 1%, the card will not be auto processed and will require effort coordinator review. The effort coordinator is responsible for reviewing each statement and may choose one of three options (Figure 12): 1. If everything looks appropriate, click the Process button at bottom to release the effort card into Certified, Processed status. 2. If you need further time to review or discuss with the certifier or PI, click Cancel. This action will take you back to your effort tasks list where you will be able to review additional certified effort cards. 3. If you believe the certification is incorrect, click Do Not Process. Choosing this option will re-open the card and it will need to be re-certified. If you choose this option you will be able to send an directly to both statement owner and all certifiers advising them that the card has been re-opened and why this action was taken (Figure 13). FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 15

16 Figure 12 Figure 13 FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 16

17 Manage Effort Notifications From the Main Menu, effort coordinators may click on Manage to access any notifications regarding Payroll Adjustments. Statements appearing in this section signify that a payroll transfer has been processed for the individual after the effort card was certified and that the Computed Effort and Certified Effort columns have now exceeded the 5% variance that FIU has set. The notification will display several pieces of information including the type of notification, the employee name, the status of the notification and the action to be taken (Figure 14). By selecting the magnifying glass in the Action column, a payroll transfer notification check list will appear. The checklist contains steps that need to be taken in order to resolve the task. When each item has been completed, click the checkbox and click resolve. This will clear out the item from the notifications area. Figure 14 FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 17

18 The Effort Statement: Cost Share Effort certification statements may contain cost sharing-related data (Figure 15). What is Cost Sharing? The funds or resources that are contributed or allocated to a sponsored project over and above the support provided by the external sponsor of that project. It is that portion of a project cost that is not borne or reimbursed by the sponsoring agency. Cost Share Types Mandatory Cost sharing that the sponsor requires as a condition of the award. Salary Cap Cost sharing required of faculty whose Institutional Base Salary (IBS) exceed the sponsor mandated salary (cap) that can be paid with the award funds. Voluntary Cost sharing the university contributes to a project that is not required by the sponsor. Adding Cost Share to an Effort Card From the Main Menu, click on Manage to Add Cost Sharing Figure 15 FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 18

19 1. In the employee box, begin to type in the last name or employee ID of the individual for whom you would like to enter cost share information. The system will attempt to match your search criteria. Once you see the appropriate name in the box, select the name to populate the employee box. 2. The to account represents the project on which the effort was performed. This cannot be a nonsponsored activity id. 3. The from account represents the source that funded the cost share for the project. This may only be a non-sponsored activity id. 4. Enter the Cost Share % or Cost Share amount related that is to be Cost Shared. 5. Select the Budget Period for which the Cost Share should be applied to 6. Select the type of Cost Share 7. Click on Add Entry You will have a chance to review the cost share entry before it posts to the individual s effort card. Once reviewed, you have three options (Figure 16): 1. Add Entry This will complete the entry 2. Revise Entry Select this option to revise any items after review 3. Cancel This will cancel the entire entry Figure 16 FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 19

20 The Effort Statement: Committed Effort Committed effort is the amount of effort promised by the institution in the proposal or the amended effort included in the award documentation. The total distribution of effort dedicated to all institutional activities for an individual must not be greater than 100%, including cost share commitments. Key Points for Committed Effort 100%, or nearly 100% research effort, is not realistically possible for individuals with significant nonresearch obligations to the institution (e.g., teaching, clinical and service) If key personnel intend to reduce their effort on sponsored programs by more than 20%, the institution needs to notify the sponsor and receive approval If the receipt of an award increases an investigator s committed effort to greater than 100%, the investigator must revise the level of effort requested by communication with the sponsor, reduce effort on other activities, or refuse the award There are two ways to view commitment data within ecrt: The first way to view commitment data is from within the effort card, under the column Committed Effort (Figure 17). Figure 17 FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 20

21 The second way to view commitment data is by running the commitment Listing Report (Figure 18) which is accessible from the effort card. Figure 18 FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 21

22 The Effort Statement: Placing an Effort Card on Hold During the open certification period, effort coordinators can place statements on hold (certifiers, however, cannot). When a statement is placed on hold, a certifier will not receive a notification that the statement is available and will be unable to certify his/her effort. Effort coordinators may place a statement on hold to reduce the amount of follow-up work that may be needed. Appropriate reasons are: No certification is required A manual statement is needed To make corrections or confirmation of data to be loaded to statement before certification To place a card on hold (Figure 19): 1. Select the On Hold check box in the upper right hand portion of the effort card 2. When the On Hold Confirmation box pops up, enter a reason for the hold. The reason for the hold is required to place a card on hold. 3. Click on the Confirm button 4. Once confirmed the card will be placed on hold until the check is removed from the on hold box. Figure 19 FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 22

23 Reporting Commitments Commitment Listing Report The Commitment Listing Report allows a user to see a complete list of all commitments for a user for a specific date range. The user can determine whether the report will include awarded commitments, proposed commitments, or both. You can search on an employee, Activity/Project ID (active or inactive), or date range. Certified Effort Compared to Effort Commitment Report The Certified Effort Compared to Effort Commitment Report displays an individual's certified effort compared to the individual's commitments. At least one effort statement for a period of performance affected by the commitment must exist for the report to display any results. Monthly Commitment Summary Report The Monthly Commitment Summary Report allows the user to view a twelve (12) month summary of Commitment. Management Organizational Department Activity/Project ID Report The Organizational Department Activity/Project ID report displays all active and inactive Activity/Project ID(s) for the selected Organizational Department. Certification Activities Report The Certification Activities Report displays a list of all certification activities that have been entered by a certifier or for all certifiers on any given Activity/Project ID. If the activity text is truncated [...], you can display the full text by placing your cursor over the text. Certification Status Report The Certification Status Report displays a list of all certification statements that have a specified status at the time the report is run. You must choose the status(es) to be included, employee type or date range, Organizational Department and/or roles to be included. Certification Status Summary Report The Certification Status Summary Report displays the number of certification statements for a specific employee type and a specific Period of Performance in each status throughout the institution grouped by Organizational Department. External Audit Report This report will produce a list of all certifiers and their historical Effort cards. The search can be conducted either by employee, Department, or Activity/Project ID. You have the option to further filter the search by the period of performance. PI's Responsible for Certifying Their Staff This report will show the PI s which are responsible for certifying any staff for a specific period of performance. Sponsored Project Activity Report The Sponsored Project Activity Report lists all users in the system whose computed Effort or certified Effort total has exceeded a user-define threshold. FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 23

24 Payroll/Cost Share Certifier Payroll Summary Report The Certifier Payroll Summary Report lists all of a certifier's accounts, the sum of the payroll for each month for a 12-month period, the total period for the 12-month period, and the percentage distribution for each account for each month and for the 12-month period. Certifier Salary Activity Report This report will produce a list of all individuals charging a certifier's Activity/Project ID(s) and their activities. Select a given PI and a starting month. The report will show the associated certifiers for that PI along with 12 months of payroll activity starting with the month that you selected. Searching by first name then last name will not produce results. You must search by last name only, first name only, id number only, or by last name then first name. Cost Share Report The Cost Share Report lists all cost share entries that are in the system. The report can be generated to show all transactions for an individual, to a specific Activity/Project ID, from a specific Activity/Project ID, after a specific date, before a specific date, or any combination of the previous. Monthly Funding and Effort Information Report The Monthly Funding and Effort Information Report shows the distribution of labor charges for a certifier during any given month. The Monthly Funding and Effort Information Report can be run for only one month at a time. Payroll and Cost Share Report The Payroll and Cost Share Report is a summary report showing all payroll and cost share transactions for a specific individual and date range. The date range can be set one of two ways. First the report can be run by selecting a Start Date and an End Date. This allows the user to run a report that crosses effort periods but is more relevant to the Activity/Project ID activity. The alternate way of setting the range is by selecting 'Employee Type'. Selecting the employee type returns results for all employees that currently are assigned to that employee type. The user then must enter an employee's name. Payroll Report The Payroll Report is a payroll summary report for a specific individual, Organizational Department or Activity/Project ID and date range. The date range for this can be set one of two ways. First, the report can be run by selecting a date range. This allows the user to run a report that crosses reporting periods but is more relevant to the Activity/Project ID activity. The alternate way of setting the range is by selecting 'Employee Type'. This will prompt the user to select the type of employee, which will in turn determine the periods that can be reviewed. By selecting the employee type does not mean you'll only get data for those employees. The employee type select is to better provide a date range for the query. To run the report, the user must then enter either an employee's name, the desired Organizational Department or Activity/Project ID. When entering an employee, Organizational Department or Activity/Project ID name, the system will provide options based on the letters as they are typed and the user will select the correct name when it appears. SPES (Sponsored Project Employee Summary) Report The SPES (Sponsored Project Employee Summary) Report lists all employees that had salary charged to a specific Activity/Project ID. This report allows certifiers and Effort Coordinators to review the employees that were paid from the grant, verify the accuracy of the charges, and make changes if necessary. FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 24

25 Quick Tips Searching within the ecrt System Effort coordinators may use the Look-up Data feature to access an individual s statement, an Organizational Department, and Activity/Project ID or an inactive Award/Activity/Project ID. The search function will only return results associated to the effort coordinator. There are two ways to search in ecrt: 1) Look-up (Figure 20): from the Main Menu, click Manage to access three other helpful features: Look-Up Data, Department Dashboard, Manage Effort Notifications and Effort Statements on Hold. Figure 20 To search for data, enter a minimum of three characters (Figure 21), then wait a few seconds for data to appear. Once the intended data appears, click on it to access it. Figure 21 FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 25

26 2) Quick Search (Figure 22): The quick search feature is located on the top right hand corner of the page. Figure 22 To search for data, enter a minimum of three characters and then wait a few seconds for data to appear. Once the intended data appears, click on it to access it. Hover Over Feature Some fields in the ecrt system display information when the mouse hovers over them (Figure 23). Please note that if you are using Internet Explorer 8 as your browser, you will need to click on Tools and then Compatibility Mode (from the menu bar) to ensure that all hover-overs appear correctly. Figure This is the field that was hovered over. 2. This is the information that was displayed. Browsers The ecrt software works with all common browsers (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, Safari, etc.) Using ecrt Help If you have questions, you can use the Help links within the ecrt system or send directly to ecrt@fiu.edu. Need Assistance? The Office of Research and Economic Development (ORED) offers various training platforms: 1) On-line training materials, including documentation, may be found at 2) To schedule a one-on-one training session, please RSVP through ecrt@fiu.edu. One-on-One sessions are offered for both certifiers and effort coordinators by appointment only. We can also accommodate group sessions. Each department has a designated Effort Coordinator that you may contact. To find your designated effort coordinator, please go to In addition, you may seek additional assistance by contacting ecrt@fiu.edu. FIU Research Tuesday, May 27, 2015 Page 26